Faded Gold
by o0whitelily0o
Summary: A young Irken with the ability to see into her own past begins to see flashes of a life that aren't hers. What are these images of a peaceful Irk, and PAKless Irkens?


_A field of silver grass, shining as a light breeze blew through, the pink sky seeming to glow with the sunlight. A touch on the shoulder by someone familiar, drawing her closer- all that was needed to perfect the scene. She leaned in towards his warm body, breathing in his sweet smell…  
_

"YARIS! Quit yer daydreaming, you have orders to serve!" A voice boomed, shattering her thoughts. Looking up, she noticed that there was indeed a mountain of trays. With a sigh, she picked up the closest one.

What had she been doing? Normally she never got lost in her thoughts like that. And if she did, it was in her own memories, never daydreams… Well, she'd worry about that later. Right now, she had to earn her meager salary.

"Thank you for choosing Tarqe's Grille, please enjoy your meal." She said, a faux smile on my face. The words had gotten so repetitive over the years. She guessed that being a waitress was better than cashier or janitorial duty, and the pay _was_ better, but it still wasn't anything to be proud of.

I guess you could consider her unlucky, having to be a waitress in one of the more backwater restaurants on Irk. But if she had to answer honestly, she'd say that she'd rather be here than in the military any day. Although most Irkens have no problem with such things, I suppose you could call her a pacifist. Not that she was like any of those activist groups that have been popping up lately, she just didn't prefer that way of life.

As the day drew to a close, and the long shift over, Yaris headed back to her dormitory. The pavement was gray and lackluster, unlike that shining silver grass she had daydreamed about. The sun was blocked by thick gray clouds, which made the pink sky seem dead. What could have caused such a vivid fantasy? She couldn't imagine-

"_Fao! Wait up!" She called to a young Irken boy a few yards ahead, clad in a poncho-like coat. She kicked up clouds of dirt as she ran along the path to get to him. He turns and stops, but she doesn't and runs right into him. They fell to the ground in a heap, her laughing, him giving an awkward half-grin._

"Oof!" Yaris said, walking right into someone. "Oh, I'm sorry." She apologized, before getting a better look at who she had ran into.

It was a young Irken boy, with loose sleeves and no gloves, and odd antennae with two points. Something about him was oddly familiar, although she could be certain she'd never seen him before. He must have been thinking the same thing, because he blinked before saying, "No problem…have we met?"

With a shake of her head, she said, "Not unless you've ever gone to Tarqe's Grille, but I doubt it. I don't remember serving you."

He looked puzzled, but seemed to dismiss something. "Well, maybe I'll drop by sometime. I'm Ornen, by the way."

"I'm Yaris." She smiled a little. Somehow, she doubted that they'd forget each other. For him, it was his antennaes that stood out. For her, it was her gold eyes. But he never mentioned them, and with a brief good-bye, he walked passed her.

For some reason she didn't quite understand, her squeedlyspooch felt all flip-floppy. Restraining the urge to giggle, she narrowed her eyes and focused on getting back to her dormitory. Unlike most Irkens, she enjoyed sleep, enjoyed reliving her memories while she did so. True, it cut drastically into her wages, but it was worth every munnie.

Easing into a chair (there were no beds on Irk) in her room, she closed her eyes and mentally lowered her PAK's energy output. Such things were helpfully thought controlled. Drifting down into darkness, she let her memories flood her mind.

"_C'mon, Pyre! You're never going to believe this!" The same Irken from before called. His voice sounded familiar, but the name escaped her. Now he was at the top of a silver grass-covered hill, with her still halfway down. _

"_Hold on, Fao! You know I can't run as fast as you." She panted, and part of her wondered why she was answering to the name 'Pyre'. But nothing stopped, and she continued running towards that boy._

"_It's because your legs are too short. If they got a little longer, you'd be able to keep up." He teased, as she made it next to him, feeling like she was about to collapse. But then he smiled and pointed. "Look out over there."_

_A large spacecraft had crashed into the bottom of the hill they were on. A group of reptilian creatures were standing around it, talking in a strange tongue. They seemed to me wearing some sort of armor, and they had long, pointed tails that almost constantly flicked back and forth._

_The two Irkens stood at the top of the hill, wondering what was happening, filled with wonder…and perhaps a sense of foreboding…which felt something like terror…_

Jolting awake, golden eyes wide, and hands grasping the arms of the chair so hard that they hurt when she relaxed.

These were not her memories…she knew all of hers. Ever since she had been a smeet, she was able to see into her own past. She always thought that she simply had an exceptional memory, but this…this was something much different.

_Who's memories are they?_ She though to herself, alone in her dorm room. Her blood chilled as an answer came in the back of her mind.

_Mine._

_A/N: The first chapter, done! Expect this to be a weekly updated sort of thing, since I only have the opportunity to write once a week._


End file.
